Gov’t rural plan earns achievement in Soc Trang province

Thursday, February 07, 2019 12:30

The Mekong delta province of Soc Trang has carried out the government’s rural plan since 2016 and obtained achievements including improving farmers’ income thanks to application of modern farming techniques and infrastructure.

These farmers in Soc Trang province have applied modern agricultural techniques to improve their income (Photo: SGGP)

From 2016 to 2018, Soc Trang has mobilized more than VND6 trillion ($258,452,866) for the government’s rural plan including nearly VND450 billion from the state budget and over VND 2 trillion from other programs.

Being a province with most of ethnic minority, poor economy and infrastructure but with the whole entire machinery of state’s considerable efforts at carrying out the government’s plan, the province has changed its face better as well as improved residents’ living condition.

61 year old Khmer farmer Chung Kim Hoang in Dai An village has invested a closed net house with automated watering system on the family’s 2,500 square meter vegetable farm to cut down cost on fertilizer and pesticide as well as improve productivity.

He was delighted because the family has had profit of VND100 million excluding all costs; his family’s earning has been much improved.

Farmers gradually adopt modern production methods which have initially generated good profits for vegetable farmers in Dai Tam Commune of My Xuyen District.

Moreover, the province has set up 125 cooperatives with 8,191 members as per the government plan and is going to establish additional 15 cooperatives operating in the new style. The province will send young engineers to work in cooperatives in short time tenure to help farmers in applying techniques with the aim to raise the income.

Mrs. Lu Tu Linh - a Chinese-Vietnamese member of Dai Tam Milk Cow Cooperative said that her family has raised 14 milk cows harvesting 35 kilogram of milk a day averagely. The cooperative pays an average of VND14,000 per kilogram , the family gains profit of VND10 million a month excluding the cost.

In 2018, Soc Trang authorities spent VND142.8 billion on the plan and nine communes have achieved the plan’s criteria bringing the total number of qualified communes to 32 out of 80.

Also in 2018, there were 11,440 impecunious households escaping poverty line taking the destitute family rate to 8.4 percent; of which, poverty-stricken Khmer families down by 4.79 percent and Chinese households by 2.5 percent compared to last year. There are currently 38.401 near-poor households accounting for 11.87 percent.

Local economy growth speed in 2018 achieved 7.2 percent with per capita income being VND37.5 million, an increase of VND3.2 million satisfying 109.33 percent of the goal. Agricultural production has seen good progress with adoption of more modern farm production models in accordance with biological safety generating greater economic efficiency.

Additionally, the province has successfully built specific agricultural brand names such as rice ST24- one of three world top rice.

Province authority has paid heed to infrastructure investment to satisfy people’s travelling and commodity transportation demand. So far, 108 over 109 towns and communes have roads to the province’s center and over 59 percent rural paths have been concreted.

With the motto that the government and residents do together, the province has mobilized VND417 billion from locals for three years to improve infrastructure; specifically, through “Nhip cau yeu thuong” (the loving bridges ) program, nearly 300 concrete bridges with the width of 2 meter – 3 meter have built carried out across the province worth hundreds of billions of Vietnam dong under the support of benefactors and people in the province.

Most of communes in the province have medical clinics and 97 of them have physicians. Moreover, 87.73 percent of people have had health insurance cards and 98 percent of locals got access to clean water. In the academic year 2018-2019, there were 269,108 students making up 99.43 percent. Of 523 schools in the province, 267 achieves the national criteria accounting for 51 percent.

More importantly, local authority has taken heed of cultural retaining of ethnic minority groups. Monk Kim Hoang Hung of Sa-Lon pagoda said that thanks to the party and the government’s attention, Buddhist followers have had better material and spiritual living condition and roads have been repaired; the rate of dropouts has reduced.

Deputy Chairman of People’s Committee Ngo Hung said that thanks to the whole entire machinery of state’s consensus and determination. Authority has early defined important role of residents in implementing the government’s rural plan which aims to bring better life for people.